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Residents and DPW warn of crumbling water infrastructure; council urged to prioritize skilled hires
Summary
Mechanicville speakers told the council that frequent water main breaks, a Grand Street boil-water situation and staffing shortages at DPW are harming service; a DPW leader urged hiring skilled water/sewer workers or contracting work while grants and bond processes continue.
Speakers at the Mechanicville City Council meeting described continuing problems with the city’s water system and urged quicker action from the council.
The Department of Public Works leader described a heavy workload for a seven-person crew responsible for more than 150 hydrants, city buildings, parks and multiple lift stations, and said several recent water-main and service failures have left residents with low pressure or boiled-water advisories on Grand Street. He warned the department lacks enough skilled water and sewer staff and said the city may need to contract out work if it cannot recruit trained plumbers.
Public commenters echoed that need, saying the city should advertise explicitly for plumbers or skilled water workers rather than general laborers. One resident argued hiring skilled staff or arranging training would be more effective than one-off contracting: “If you contract that you get the jobs done then they’re done with you — it’s a one-time affair — but bringing in experts to train our crew could leave us better in the long run,” the resident said.
Council members and staff discussed grant funding and red tape. Officials noted a major prior leak on Central Avenue had driven higher measured water loss last year and that recent work reduced the reported water loss from about 45% to about 15%. Staff described a pending grant for water infrastructure that remains in an approval process and said paperwork and state-level processes have delayed engineering work.
The discussion concluded with requests from councilors that staff return more detailed budget transfer reports and continue work on the bond for a fire truck and on grant-related engineering once approvals are in place.
Next steps: staff said they will pursue hiring avenues for skilled labor, explore training partnerships, and continue work on grant and bond processing. The council requested more regular, line-item financial reports to assess capacity for hires or contracting.
